Oven Rack Apparatus and Corresponding Method

ABSTRACT

An oven rack apparatus for supporting a cooking utensil in an oven. The oven rack apparatus includes a support portion configured to support the cooking utensil thereon. A handle portion is disposed on a side of the support portion. The handle portion has an extremely low thermal conductivity.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to an oven rack apparatus, such as an oven rack apparatus used with an electric, natural gas, propane, convection, microwave and/or combination oven, as well as a corresponding method.

It is known to dispose one or more oven racks in an interior cavity of an oven. The oven rack is pulled out from the interior cavity of the oven to facilitate placement of a cooking utensil (e.g., a pan) on the oven rack, so that foodstuffs disposed in the cooking utensil can be heated in the oven. The oven rack is also pulled out from the interior cavity to facilitate removal of the cooking utensil from the oven. The oven rack is pushed in before and/or after being pulled out so that a door of the oven can be closed, thereby closing off the interior cavity.

The oven rack is generally made of a metal material that has a relatively high thermal capacitance and a relatively high thermal conductivity. When the interior cavity of the oven is heated to a high temperature, in a relatively short time period, a temperature of the oven rack becomes about equal to the high temperature of the interior cavity.

If a user of the oven contacts the high temperature oven rack, such as with a hand or finger, a relatively high heat flux is initiated between the point of contact of the user and the oven rack. The user can be burned or perceive that she has been burned when the user attempts to pull out or push in the high temperature oven rack without adequately insulating herself from the oven rack. This can occur if the user does not use an oven mitt, for example, because of the inconvenience of using, or the unavailability of, the oven mitt that is separate from the oven rack.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The invention overcomes one or more of the above-discussed or other disadvantages of an oven rack that is configured to be disposed in an oven.

In an embodiment, the invention provides an oven rack apparatus for supporting a cooking utensil in an oven, the oven rack apparatus including a support portion configured to support the cooking utensil thereon. A handle portion is disposed on a side of the support portion. The handle portion has a thermal conductivity of about 0.03 W/(m*K) or less.

In another embodiment, the invention provides an oven rack apparatus for supporting a cooking utensil in an oven, the oven rack apparatus including a support portion configured to support the cooking utensil thereon. A means is used for pulling the support portion out of and for pushing the support portion into the oven. The means is disposed on a side of the support portion and has a thermal conductivity of about 0.03 W/(m*K) or less.

In still another embodiment, the invention provides an oven rack apparatus for supporting a cooking utensil in an oven, the oven rack apparatus including a support portion configured to support the cooking utensil thereon. A handle portion is disposed on a side of the support portion. The handle portion has a thermal conductivity insufficient to cause a burn on a hand of a user of the oven rack apparatus when the handle portion is heated to a temperature in excess of 500 degrees Fahrenheit and is touched by the hand of the user.

In still another embodiment, the invention provides a method of fabricating an oven rack apparatus for supporting a cooking utensil in an oven. The method includes forming a support portion configured to support the cooking utensil thereon, and disposing a handle portion, having a thermal conductivity of about 0.03 W/(m*K) or less, on a side of the support portion.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The following figures illustrate examples of embodiments of the invention. The figures are described in detail below.

FIG. 1 is a top isometric view of an oven rack apparatus in accordance with embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a top isometric view showing the oven rack apparatus of FIG. 1 unassembled.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

Embodiments of the invention are described below, with reference to the figures. Throughout the figures, like reference numbers indicate the same or similar components.

FIG. 1 is a top isometric view of an oven rack apparatus 100, while FIG. 2 is a top isometric view showing the oven rack apparatus 100 unassembled. It is to be understood that embodiments of the oven rack apparatus 100 can be used with an oven that is disposed in a free-standing, slide-in or drop-in range or disposed as a built-in, over-the-range or countertop oven, as well as with an oven disposed anywhere else. It also is to be understood that embodiments of the oven rack apparatus 100 can be used with an electric, natural gas, propane, convection, microwave and/or combination oven, as well as with any other type of oven.

As shown in the figures, the oven rack apparatus 100 includes a support portion 150 and a handle portion 170. Although specific embodiments of the support portion 150 are shown and described, including the specific shape of a grate shown in the drawings, it is to be understood that the support portion 150 can be any structure capable of supporting a cooking utensil thereon when the oven rack apparatus 100 is disposed in an interior cavity of an oven, such that: The oven rack apparatus 100 can be pulled out from the interior cavity of the oven to facilitate placement of a cooking utensil (e.g., a pan) on the support portion 150; the oven rack apparatus 100 can be pulled out from the interior cavity to facilitate removal of the cooking utensil from the support portion 150; and/or such that the oven rack apparatus 100 can be pushed in before and/or after being pulled out.

In embodiments of the invention, the support portion 150 is made of a metal material that has a relatively high thermal capacitance and a relatively high thermal conductivity. As a result, when the interior cavity of the oven in which the oven rack apparatus 100 is disposed is heated to a high temperature, in a relatively short time period a temperature of the oven rack apparatus 100, including the support portion 150, becomes about equal to the high temperature of the interior cavity.

In a manner similar to that discussed above, if a user of the oven contacts the high temperature support portion 150 (i.e., the support portion 150 that is at the high temperature), such as with a hand or finger, a relatively high heat flux is initiated between the point of contact of the user and the rack. The user can be burned or perceive that she has been burned when the user attempts to pull out or push in the high temperature support portion 150.

For these reasons, the oven rack apparatus 100 includes a handle portion 170 that has a relatively low thermal conductivity. As a result, even when the user contacts the handle portion 170 that has been heated to a high temperature about equal to the high temperature of the oven and/or about equal to the high temperature of the support portion 150, a relatively low heat flux is initiated between the point of contact of the user and the handle portion 170. The handle portion 170 is configured such that the heat flux is insufficient to result in a burn and/or perception of a burn to the user.

In embodiments of the invention, the handle portion 170 is fabricated from an aerogel material. Aerogel is a low-density solid-state material derived from gel in which the liquid component of the gel is replaced with gas. A suitable aerogel material can have a thermal conductivity approximately one half of a thermal conductivity of thermal wool and approximately one third of a thermal conductivity of fiberglass. It has been determined that use of such an aerogel material, even when heated to a temperature exceeding about 550 degrees Fahrenheit (about 288 degrees Celsius), results in such a relatively low heat flux between the user and the handle portion 170 that contact does not result in a burn and does not result in perception of a burn, even when contact is maintained indefinitely after the handle portion 170 has been moved from the 550 degrees Fahrenheit (about 288 degrees Celsius) environment to a room temperature environment. By way of specific examples, a thermal conductivity of the handle portion 170, such as an aerogel material used to fabricate the handle portion 170, can be about 0.03 W/(m*K) or less, and in particular can be about 0.01 W/(m*K) or less for specific aerogels, and can be from about 0.003 W/(m*K) to about 0.017 W/(m*K) for a specific silica aerogel. When the thermal conductivity of the handle portion is greater than about 0.03 W/(m*K), a typical user can no longer indefinitely maintain contact with the handle portion 170 heated in the above manner, without being burned or perceiving a burn. Rather, the time period during which contact can be maintained without resulting in a burn or the perception of a burn becomes finite and shortens exponentially as the thermal conductivity of the handle portion 170 increases.

In embodiments of the invention, the handle portion 170 is fabricated from an aerogel material that is flexible, but still has limited compressibility and can act structurally firm when used as a handle for the oven rack apparatus 100. In contrast, fiberglass is highly compressible, and therefore cannot act structurally firm when used as a handle for the oven rack apparatus 100.

A specific example of a suitable aerogel material, with one or more of the desired thermal conductivity, flexibility and limited compressibility, is PYROGEL 6270®, which is manufactured by Aspen Aerogels, Inc., of Northborough, Mass.

As shown in FIG. 2, in embodiments of the invention, the handle portion 170 is fabricated from a sheet portion 171. As understood from the above discussion, the sheet portion 171 can be fabricated from an aerogel material. The sheet portion 171 can be fastened to the support portion 150. Specifically, the sheet portion 171 can be folded over, so as to be disposed on a top and a bottom of the support portion 150. As shown in the drawings, multiple clips 173 (such as two clips 173) are used to fasten the sheet portion 171 to the support portion 150. Alternatively, or in combination with the clips 173, the sheet portion 171 can be adhesively attached to the support portion 150. An example of a suitable adhesive includes, but it not limited to, a ceramic adhesive. Still further, the sheet portion 171 can be fastened to the support portion 150 in a manner other than that discussed above and/or shown in the drawings. As shown in the figures, the handle portion 170/the sheet portion 171 extends some portion of a front side of the support portion 150, and is disposed about symmetrically on the front side of the support portion 150. Alternatively, the handle portion 170/the sheet portion 171 can extend about an entire length of the front side of the support portion 150. By this arrangement, the handle portion 170/the sheet portion 171 fully covers an entire side of the support portion 150.

Embodiments of the present invention include a method of fabricating the above-described oven rack apparatus 100. The method can include forming the support portion 150, and disposing the handle portion 170, as described in detail above.

This written description uses examples to disclose embodiments of the invention, including the best mode, and also to enable a person of ordinary skill in the art to make and use embodiments of the invention. It is understood that the patentable scope of embodiments of the invention is defined by the claims, and can include additional components occurring to those skilled in the art. Such other arrangements are understood to be within the scope of the claims. 

1. An oven rack apparatus for supporting a cooking utensil in an oven, the oven rack apparatus comprising: a support portion configured to support the cooking utensil thereon; and a handle portion disposed on a side of the support portion, the handle portion having a thermal conductivity of about 0.03 W/(m*K) or less.
 2. The oven rack apparatus according to claim 1, where the handle portion is fabricated from a material having a thermal conductivity of about 0.01 W/(m*K) or less.
 3. The oven rack apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the handle portion is fabricated from an aerogel material.
 4. The oven rack apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the aerogel material has a thermal conductivity of about 0.01 W/(m*K) or less.
 5. The oven rack apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the handle portion extends about an entire length of the side of the support portion.
 6. The oven rack apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the handle portion comprises a sheet portion folded over to be disposed on a top and a bottom of the support portion.
 7. The oven rack apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the handle portion comprises a plurality of clips that fasten the sheet portion to the support portion.
 8. The oven rack apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the handle portion comprises an adhesive that fastens the sheet portion to the support portion.
 9. The oven rack apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the handle portion comprises a sheet portion folder over on the support portion to be disposed on a top and a bottom of the support portion.
 10. The oven rack apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the handle portion comprises a plurality of clips that fasten the sheet portion to the support portion.
 11. The oven rack apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the handle portion comprises an adhesive that fastens the sheet portion to the support portion.
 12. An oven rack apparatus for supporting a cooking utensil in an oven, the oven rack apparatus comprising: a support portion configured to support the cooking utensil thereon; and means for pulling the support portion out of and for pushing the support portion into the oven, the means disposed on a side of the support portion and having a thermal conductivity of about 0.03 W/(m*K) or less.
 13. An oven rack apparatus for supporting a cooking utensil in an oven, the oven rack apparatus comprising: a support portion configured to support the cooking utensil thereon; and a handle portion disposed on a side of the support portion, the handle portion having a thermal conductivity insufficient to cause a burn on a hand of a user of the oven rack apparatus when the handle portion is heated to a temperature in excess of 500 degrees Fahrenheit and is touched by the hand of the user.
 14. A method of fabricating an oven rack apparatus for supporting a cooking utensil in an oven, the method comprising: forming a support portion configured to support the cooking utensil thereon; and disposing a handle portion, having a thermal conductivity of about 0.03 W/(m*K) or less, on a side of the support portion.
 15. The method according to claim 14, wherein disposing the handle portion comprises providing the handle portion having a thermal conductivity of about 0.01 W/(m*K) or less.
 16. The method according to claim 15, wherein disposing the handle portion comprises forming the handle portion from an aerogel material.
 17. The method according to claim 14, wherein disposing the handle portion comprises forming the handle portion from an aerogel material.
 18. The method according to claim 14, wherein disposing the handle portion comprises folding a sheet portion over a top and a bottom of the support portion.
 19. The method according to claim 14, further comprising: clipping the sheet portion to the support portion to form the handle portion.
 20. The method according to claim 18, further comprising: adhering the sheet portion to the support portion to form the handle portion. 